Record sensing device



Sept. 13, 1938.

` M. F. HAYES RECORD SENS ING DEVICE Filed June l, 1936 A' as. FlG. Fl

E ATTORNEY v Patented Sept. 13, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE maconn sENsING nevica A 'plication June 1, 1936, Serial No. 82,876

2 Claims.

This invention relates to analyzing devices for perforated record controlled machines, such as record sorting and tabulating machines. More particularly, it relates to machines of this nature 5 where the records are analyzed by electric brushes while the records are in motion.

One of the objects of the invention is to improve upon analyzing or sensing devices of this nature by reducing the burning of the contacting l parts.

Another object is to decrease Ifailure of the sensing brushes to close a circuit through the perforations in the records.

Another object is to produce an analyzing or 15 sensing brush structure adapted to overcome the eiects of dust particles which may tend to prevent the strands of the sensing brush from contacting with the cooperating conductor.

Various other objects and advantages of the 20 invention will be obvious from the following particular description of one form of mechanism embodying the invention or from an inspection of the accompanying drawing; and the invention also constitutes certain new and useful features 25 of construction and combination of parts hereinafter set forth and claimed.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a sectional side elevation of a portion of a machine adapted to analyze perforated rec- 30 ords while the records are in motion.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary enlarged detail showing a sensing brush and a metallic roller adapted to cooperate with the brush for closing an electric circuit.

35 Fig. 3 is a plan of Fig. 2 showing two adjacent brushes.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 2 showing the action of the brushes as the hole in the record passes the ends of the brushes.

40 Fig. 5 is a section taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 2.

Figs. 6 and 7 are views showing modied methods of securing the brush strands in position.

In the drawing the record cards I are adapted to be fed one at a time by a card picker 2 to feed i5 rollers 3 which carry the card downwardly, be-

tween the sensing brushes 4 on one side of the card and a cooperating roller 5 on the other side. The train of gears 6 which serve to operate the card feeding mechanism also drives a gear 1 i0 which meshes with a gear 8 attached to the contact roller 5 to cause the latter to turn in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 1. As shown in Fig. 2, the brush 4 is made up of three separate, spaced groups of Wires 9 secured i5 in a ferrule l 0. Each group comprises six strands (Cl. 20o-46) arranged as shown in Fig. 5 with their endsvcast in position or held by separate ferrules as in Fig. 6 or by spacers Il as in Fig. 7.

In existing machines the brushes are formed of a single group of closely packed strands of wire and in the operation of such machines, small particles of dust including paper dust are dragged by the brushes along the surface of the card and then through the perforation onto the. surface of the contact roller. These particles tend to 10 separate the brush wires from the roller and this in turn tends to draw a spark. Also the dust particles which have lifted the wires off the roller to produce the spark are burned by the spark as is also the end of the brush; that is, the arcing causes oxidization of the brush ends and they thereafter wear o rapidly or break.

Another difficulty encounteredin existing Inachines employing closely packed brushes is due to what has been termed piling; that is, the lifting of one strand by another. This piling ls exaggerated when particles of card or other dust get between the ends of the strands. As the brush leaves theV hole in the record the outer strands are engaged by the edge of the hole and exed slightly. 'I'his bending of the outer brushes is transmitted to the adjacent brushes and they in turn are lifted before they have been reached by the edge of the hole.

With the present arrangement'this lifting of 30 all the strands as one is prevented as shown in Fig. 4 where the upper group has been engaged by the upper edge of the hole in the record card, but due to the provision of 'the space between groups, any dust present will not cause the next group to be lifted out of contact with the roller 5.

It may be explained that in the circuits completed by the brushes there are included circuit breakers which make, after some of the strands have made contact through the hole and break 40 the circuit before all the strands have left the hole, thus preventing any direct making or breaking of the circuit at the hole. It is therefore important that the brushes remain in contact with the roller as long as possible for if 4 5 raised due to piling or card dust a break with consequent arcing will occurs before the circuit breakers have openedthe circuit.

It is of prime importance thatA the brushes .remain in contact as long as possible when it is noted that the high speed machines in which they are utilized feed cards at the rate of about 300 cards a minute, passing 4,800 hole positions a minute by the brushes. This allows a duration of contact for each hole analysis of about te`n thousandths of a second and if this time is appreciably decreased, the mechanism controlled by the circuits through the brushes will not operate reliably.

In tests conducted to show the relative eiliciency of the present brushes and those of the present improvement it was found that upwards oi ten times as many cards could be runthrough the machine and analyzed by the improved type than with present brushes before evidence of burning of brush ends was apparent.

While there has been shown and described and pointed out the fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to a Asingle modification, it will be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changes in the form and details of the device illustrated and in its operation may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention. It is the intention therefore to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a machine for analyzing perforations in a movable record, a. contact element positioned at one side of the record, anda brush positioned at the other side of the record and engageable with the contact element through the perforation, said brush constituting a plurality o! ilexible strands of wire separated into groups. movable independently of each other, whereby the trailing edge of the perforation will ex each group independently of another group.

2. In a machine for analyzing perforationsin a movable record, a contact roller positioned at one side of the record and a brush positioned at the other side of the record and-engageable with the contact roller through the perforation, said brush constituting a plurality of exibie strands of wire secured at one end in a ferrule and separated in said ferrule by spacers into a plurality of groups whereby the ilexing of -any group as the free ends of the same leave the perforation will be prevented4 from interfering with the action of the other groups.

MAXWELL F. HAYES. 

